Car Theft Suspect Leads Cops In Chase

A Crystal Lake man, allegedly driving a stolen car, led police on an hourlong chase through three counties early Wednesday before being caught in a field in Streamwood.

Gustavo Navarro, 17, of 577 Crystal Pl., was caught in a field near Irving Park Road and Illinois Highway 59, where he had fled on foot after abandoning the car, police said.

The arresting officers were guided to Navarro's hiding place by Illinois State Police Sgt. James Griffith, who was piloting the department's aircraft, police said.

Navarro was charged by Algonquin police with possession of a stolen motor vehicle, fleeing and eluding police and failure to have a valid driver's license, according to the McHenry County state's attorney's office. Navarro was being held Wednesday night in the McHenry County Jail and was scheduled for a bond hearing Thursday morning.

Carpentersville police also filed several traffic charges against Navarro for allegedly colliding with another vehicle at Randall and Binnie Roads during the chase. The driver of that vehicle was slightly injured, police said.

The incident began in Crystal Lake shortly after 7 a.m. Wednesday when a resident of the 900 block of Golf Course Road called police to report that his 1988 Toyota Celica, which had been left with the engine running at the curb, had been stolen, said Crystal Lake police Sgt. Howard Parth.

"While our officers were en route there, we put a description of the car on the radio, and it was spotted by Algonquin police," Sgt. Parth said.

Navarro allegedly led Algonquin police on a circuitous route through country and suburban roads southward from Crystal Lake to Gilberts and Carpentersville, then onto the Northwest Tollway and into Elgin.

As the chase proceeded through Elgin, police there were dispatched to warn school crossing guards to be alert for the fugitive and the pursuers, said Elgin Deputy Police Chief James Burns.

As Navarro left Elgin eastbound on Villa Avenue, then south on Illinois Highway 59, he was spotted by the state police aircraft.

Navarro parked the car just north of Irving Park Road and Bittersweet Avenue, and fled on foot into a wooded area northwest of Irving Park and Illinois Highway 59, said Streamwood police Cmdr. Dennis LaFrana. He said the area was surrounded, and Navarro was arrested in a field within about five minutes of abandoning the car.